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Israel Bermudez and Rachel Lemus La Yarda Interview

Publication date: 2006

Usage: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International

Topics: La Yarda (Lawrence, Kan.), Hispanic Americans -- Housing -- Kansas -- Lawrence, Mexican Americans -- History -- Kansas -- Lawrence, Mexican Americans -- Social conditions -- Kansas -- Lawrence

Publisher: Watkins Community Museum (Lawrence, Kan.)

Contributor: Lawrence Public Library (Lawrence, Kan.)

Language: English

Item Size: 4.6G

Siblings Israel Bermudez and Rachel (Bermudez) Lemus were interviewed by Helen Krische in 2006 as part of an oral history project to document the La Yarda and Mexican-American communities in Lawrence, Kansas. La Yarda was a neighborhood of worker housing provided by the Santa Fe Railroad for Mexican-American railroad workers; located near the Kansas (Kaw) River, the neighborhood was largely destroyed by a major flood in 1951. The interview is split into two parts. Israel and Rachel grew up in East Lawrence; their family came to Lawrence in the late 1920s due to their father's work on the railroad. Israel and Rachel describe their family's journey from Mexico to Lawrence, their school experiences, and their experiences of discrimination and segregation as part of the Mexican-American community in Lawrence. Israel served in the military and shares some memories from that time. Rachel and Israel also describe daily life in their neighborhood, including work, childhood pasttimes, foodways, and funeral customs.